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The commandment which the Sages so highly acclaim (i.e., the settling of the land of Israel), to the point where they say: 'Anybody who leaves [the Land of Israel] to live outside of the land is to be considered like an idolater,' is a positive commandment: We have been commanded to inherit the land and live in it. Ramban
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Matot is the penultimate parasha of the book of Numbers. This short parasha is usually combined with next week's final parasha: Masei, but this year they are read separately. Before next week's final summary of the Israelites' journey, our text includes a description of land allotments to various tribes. Last week, the Torah was concerned with who lives where, laws of inheritance and land, and next week the verse, "Inherit the land and live in it, since it is to you that I am giving the land to occupy" (Numbers 33:53) is the basis for the commandment for the Jewish community as a whole to have a Jewish state. The importance of living in the land of Israel cannot be over-estimated. According to some, it outweighs all the other mitzvot; while living in the land of Israel, even secular and mundane activities such as shopping, breathing and sleeping are counted as mitzvot. Surprisingly, the Rambam (Maimonides) does not list it as one of the 613 mitzvot. In contrast, the Ramban (Nachmanides), interprets the phrase "and live in it" to mean that it is a mitzvah for each individual to live in the land of Israel, (even if the land is under outside control), and this mitzvah is "incumbent upon every individual in every generation." On the eve of entering the Promised Land, I am not surprised that our text has a pro-Zionist message.
In this week's parasha, the tribes of Reuben and Gad want to settle in the land east of the Jordan. (Never mind the "West bank"- these tribes wanted the East bank too! There are Israelis/Jews who see in their minds a map of 'Greater Israel' that includes large portions of what is now Jordan!) Anyway, these Reubenites and Gadites had much cattle, and after beating around the bush, timidly propose that they stay behind (ie. on the east side of the Jordan) where the conditions were suitable for pasture. Only after Moses rebukes them for not sharing responsibility for conquering the land do they offer to cross the Jordan to fight, and then return to their share on the eastern side of the Jordan.
The term used for these 'armed men' is chalutzim, translated as 'shock-troops' (JPS), 'shock-fighters' (Etz Chayim), or 'vanguard' (Alter). Everett Fox renders it as 'drafted'. Most readers are probably more familiar with the Hebrew term as a reference to Israel's first pioneers, who drained the swamps, fought malaria and founded the first kibbutzim. Its positive connotations contrast with the current term 'settlers' who live in areas outside of Israel's 1948 borders. Chalutz is coincidentally the name of Israel's current Chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Dan Halutz who a few weeks ago received a threatening letter from opponents to the disengagement. I try to not relate the parasha to political issues, but I think this week I can't avoid it any longer.
Israeli society was divided when Israel withdrew from Sinai and settlers were removed from Yamit. The Gaza disengagement, now only weeks away, is again tearing at Israeli society's seams. There is talk of civil war and military coups (a scenario described in a recent book: Code Blue). Recent news reports have described huge demonstrations, soldiers defying orders and PM Sharon warning extremists that violence against security forces jeopardizes the existence of the State of Israel. For some Jews giving up any of biblically described (which means God-given) land is heresy. It's God's land, after all, so that's why, (as Rashi points out in his very first comment on the first verse of the Torah) God can give it to whomever God wants. But not eveyone who believes that God gave Israel to the Jews, opposes the disengagement. (See Haim Watzman, author of 'Company C: An American’s Life as a Citizen-Soldier in Israel' who as a religious Jew followed orders for many years to protect Israeli settlements in the West Bank, even though he thought that it was wrong for Israel to have built them.) But whatever one's ideal contours of Israel's borders, we should ask ourselves what is the religious meaning of living in Israel or 'disengaging'?"
Besides the political (does this concession strengthen or weaken our bargaining position?), military (do we have secure borders?), and economical considerations (do we bulldoze the greenhouses or sell them?) there is always tremendous religious angst about giving up territory. I am no political analyst, so I can't answer those issues, but I can ask what does the mitzvah of living in Israel mean. Is it living in "Israel the country" ie. a Jewish state where everything is in Hebrew, where the country is on 'Jewish time' and the place where our history is in every rock and stone? Or is it living on "biblical" land in what is now sovereign Egypt, or Jordan, or what will be a Palestinian state? (Remember that there are many biblical descriptions of the Land of Israel with widely differing borders. Like Canada's Sea to Sea, Israel is described from River (Nile) to River (Euphrates).)
Since most of our readers do not live in Israel, we have a different question to consider. We don't have to decide how to interpret the mitzvah of living in the land of Israel, but still must consider what place will the land of Israel have in our lives. What is the essence of living in Israel for those of us in the diaspora, and what do we miss out on by choosing to not live there?
Lessons for Today
Many Israelis have expressed their disappointment with the lack of Jewish solidarity in the face of terror that they faced daily during the last Intifada (while Christian tours continued to visit). Now that the security situation has improved, tourism has begun to rebound. But we should learn from Moses' rebuke to the tribes that suggested they just sit back: "Are your brothers going to war while you stay here? Why will you turn the minds of the Israelites from crossing into the land which Adonai has given them...." (Num 32:6-7). In the end, the almost cowardly Reubenites and Gadites really delivered. They went ahead and fought for their brothers and sisters so that everyone was in possession of their portion. May we be like the Reubenites and Gadites and demonstrate our solidarity with our brothers and sisters in the land of Israel during this difficult period.
Shabbat Shalom
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